Gidleigh Park

My partner and I visited Gidleigh Park to celebrate my 50th birthday. I wanted to experience an exceptional evening with outstanding food …… a bucket list evening. I chose the regular three-course menu, while my partner, who is vegetarian, had the vegetarian option. Both were exceptional. The service was impeccable, with the staff providing a detailed explanation of each course. Even the bread and small appetisers which make it feel more like a five-course experience were delicious. The wine list is extensive but pricey, ranging from around £40 up to £1,500 a bottle! Unfortunately, it was a bit beyond our budget this time, however, I would have loved to enjoy a bottle or two with the meal. If you are reading this and fancy buying me a bottle please do! After dinner, we relaxed in the drawing room with a lovely coffee, and the team surprised me with a small birthday treat, as we’d mentioned it when we arrived (see photo). A quick heads-up: the drive to Gidleigh Park is quite winding, and there’s a very narrow bridge you’ll need to cross carefully — it’s only about 7ft wide, so it can feel tight if you’re driving an SUV, Land Rover, or a larger car. All in all a great night out! Well worth a visit! Treat yourself!

As others have said the service is exceptional, all team members work hard to look after you. Dinner was very nice although not outstanding for the price. Although we don’t often comment on price we were disappointed to see that every time we ordered a drink in the lounge we were charged £5 service. We were encouraged to drink in the lounge rather than the bar by staff. Therefore a bottle of beer which is already a crazy £10.50 becomes £15.50!!!! Wouldn’t stay again for that reason alone.

Beautiful property. Great amenities. Brilliant staff. Wonderful service. Would definitely recommend this place and visit again. ||So many great touches eg morning tea brought to the room each day to help you feel at home. ||Only considerations are that the hotel is a bit isolated but we liked that, plus the food may lack variety and the value may be questioned.||Overall a lovely experience plus we got lucky with the weather.

We stayed for 2 nights in June. The front of house staff we met were all amazing but unfortunately there were some issues that disappointed us. Some of these we raised with management and others not.||The hotel is set in a truly tranquil setting up a very long single track. It’s very striking on arrival.||We booked a room with a very large balcony we were looking forward to sitting out on in the gorgeous hot weather. Unfortunately this was not possible as on stepping onto the balcony we immediately discovered a wasp nest by the door. The balcony was covered in moss which lead us to conclude it had not been cleaned in ages or the wasp nest would have been spotted as you couldn’t avoid the swarm of bees. The hotel kindly offered to move us but by now we had unpacked so declined. Pest control were called but the wasps were still there when we left ||For the cost of this room (a lot!) we would have expected the toiletries to have been filled but several of the bottles were half empty leaving us to conclude they had not been cleaned between guests which you expect in quality hotels. ||We were on the first floor and the service kitchen door was left open continually and the door to the staff room was open so we could hear the staff all chatting! Neither of these were very professional in our view.||We ate in the restaurant one night and you couldn’t fault the food and service. Breakfast was also great. ||This has the potential to be a super hotel but needs a bit of a shake up especially considering the costs. We were given a discount due to the wasps which we appreciated.||The hotel felt very formal but the front of house team were very friendly and helpful

We had a 2 night stay with Dinner Bed and Breakfast to celebrate my birthday.||Firstly, I recommend you take note of arrival directions as we didn’t and followed the satnav and it was a long, very narrow drive up to the hotel. We should have gone into Chagford and then it’s only a couple of miles on narrow lanes. ||We were met at the door, and car parked, bags taken to our room. Had lunch in the drawing room overlooking the beautiful garden.|Despite, the rain, we had a lovely walk around the grounds and along the river. ||We stayed in their Classic room, (Roos) which was on top floor overlooking the garden and river. It did get a bit hot up there, but the window opened and a fan was present in the room. Very comfortable and lovely big bathroom with large walking shower . ||Drinks in the bar before a lovely dinner. Exquisitely presented 3 course dinner but tiny portions. Restaurant was very formal and quiet……Drinks and wine very pricey. ||Breakfast was made to order and served to your table. The staff were all very efficient and professional, |Nearby Chagford was a delightful little village to visit as well as the near by National Trust Castle Drogo. |All in all, A beautiful but expensive experience.

Gidleigh Park is absolutely stunning, but it’s the people who make it truly special. From the moment we arrived we were greeted with genuine warmth, and every member of staff was friendly, attentive and professional without being stuffy. Dinner was superb, and the thoughtful little touches—like madeira and chocolates in the room, and morning coffee with the day’s paper—made our stay feel extra special. A perfect mix of relaxed luxury and outstanding service. We can’t wait to return!

We booked afternoon tea last Sunday and really enjoyed it. From the moment we walked in, we were greeted by two lovely ladies who seated us and took our order. The waiter was also very knowledgeable and explained everything that was being served. The hotel is clean and tidy with a pleasant ambience. The only comment I would make is to ensure a clean cloth is used when polishing the glass on the table, as it had some smears. Apart from that, everything else was great.

Tony Bennett left his heart in San Francisco; I left mine at Gidleigh Park Hotel. Wow! The extensive grounds and gardens, the magnificent historic building, the common area rooms, the service....total magic. There is no other hotel experience like it in England or in any other country. I will be back every year. ||There were so many things that made our stay outstanding. I hope you have the opportunity to discover them.

Well it was a treat! And I will say it was worth it. Expensive_ but memorable. Gidleigh Park definitely deserves its Michelin Stars unlike somewhere I have eaten in Exeter! Setting = Moorland edge Food = Crafted to a higher level Staff= Performed their tasks with precision _ I only drank water, as it was a long way to drive and I wasn't going to drink. Yet like magic just as my glass emptied, they would re-fill it. I have to say I drank my water glass dry many times as it was such fun watching them fill it up again! The food did taste special _ not only the taste, but the texture, goodness knows what sort of sieve they used to get things so smooth. And some of the dishes were feats of engineering. I think I was just enjoying being delighted. Another nice thing was I especially didn't dress up smartly just to see how the staff would behave towards me. And hats- off-to- them...they treated us exceptionally well; which inwardly made me giggle as we both were wearing our 'Star-Trek' T shirts that day. I would recommend going to Gidleigh which falls under the auspices of Michael Caines the chef and not the Cockney Actor (Sir Michael Caine). SAVE UP and go, just the once it is worth the trip, I promise! March 2010 We returned. Our Expectations were higher this year based on 2009. Somehow it does represent good value for money. Even today the impression they made on me is glowing! I would urge anyone to make an effort and get out to Chagford. Gidleigh is on my list of Top things to do for ultimate pleasure. January 2011 The food was highly enjoyable. It is still a worthwhile trip you will not be disappointed. See photos...

This is the ultimate escape. The manual to using this resort is extremely simple: get here by horse. Contact the hotel to arrange this. If you can't ride horses, a helicopter may be a good alternative. For those of us not reading the manual, remember that you'll be driving on 10 feet wide roads lined by thick, 600-years old oak hedges. They are enlisted cultural heritage and protected by UNESCO. In other words, it's exactly the same roads people used 600 years ago. Quite an experience. No matter what your GPS says, a car journey form Exeter will take you at least 3 hours. The hotel operates time slots for alternating directions of traffic - check your arrival time with them. If you are coming for dinner only, time planning is even more crucial. Quite rightly, the butler will simply not let you skip courses. They will be served in the intended order without exception. In the case of an 8-course dinner, expect it to last until 11 pm. Whether you arrive on a horse or dig your own tunnel, you haven't lived until you come here.

This is an amazing hotel. Everything about it is relaxing and well judged. The location is brilliant and you can easily walk onto Dartmoor. The rooms (I've stayed in two) are everything you would expect from a hotel room and a bit more, the beds are perfect and the peace outside means I slept better than I had for years. The best part about the rooms is the bathrooms, which are generally enormous and feature brilliant huge walk in showers. As you'd expect, food and wine are high on the hotel's priority list and we couldn't fault them. This visit we had the tasting menu on the first night and a la carte on the second. Both meals were brilliant and the wine selected for us went perfectly with the food. The duckling went down particularly well but the sheer number of different flavours in each dish was so impressive and it was impossible to not like any of them. So far so good then, but probably the best thing about the hotel is the service. I'm a bit younger, poorer and scruffier than the usual customers, and this has led similar hotels to have a bit of a snooty attitude in the past. Not so here, the staff treated me with the same high level of respect with which they treated everybody, I couldn't fault them.

10/10 for food and service and quality of rooms! Not the cheapest hotel in the world but well up to scratch. From the receptionist to the waitresses to the maids everyone was bright and friendly and made the whole experience a dream. The restaurant in particular was absolutely tip top I sent my compliments to the chef on the night and I do so again thru my review!!

if u want style and a bit of zazz this is the place. only went for a cuppa and the experience was lovely. going to try high tea next! expensive but worth it.